Thought of the Day !!

The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:13 (NLT)

Peter and John had been healing and preaching in the Temple and had gotten themselves arrested by the religious rulers. Once before the council, they spoke up boldly for Jesus, sharing all that the Holy Spirit led to say.

Of key importance in this passage is the fact that the religious leaders noticed how Peter and John were ordinary men. They had no training in theology or public speaking. They were Galileans…fishermen…not known as upper class or educated people. But when they spoke about Jesus, their voices were clear and distinctive. They spoke with the authority of experts on the subject. And this all came from God’s Holy Spirit, just as Jesus had predicted beforehand.

Don't think that speaking the Truth of Jesus (sharing your faith, witnessing, telling others about Chris, etc.) is the duty and responsibility of pastors and missionaries alone. This is something we're all called to do. Some are simply called to do it to a greater degree than others.

Another thing that the leaders recognized was that these men had been with Jesus. Do people recognize that you have been with Jesus? Or do you blend in to the culture around you?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

The LORD will work out his plans for my life -- for your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever. Don't abandon me, for you made me.
Psalm 138:8 (NLT)

God does have a plan for each of us. We have to make the choices in life. But He still has a plan for us that is what would be not only best for us, but would bring us the most joy.

He goes to all this trouble to guide, nudge or point us in the right direction because of His faithfulness to us and that great amount of love He has for each and every one of His children.

God's desire is for us to follow Him (through the ways of His Son and by the power of the Holy Spirit) so that we can be happy. Be blest this week seeking your happiness in the Lord.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
Colossians 3:23 (NIV)

Let everything you do today be done as if we were doing it on God's behalf, and see how your day changes.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord's Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity
Acts 2:46 (NLT)

The Early Church was dedicated to worship. They didn’t come when they felt like it. They met together daily at the Temple to worship. Notice that the Bible says daily and not weekly. Today it’s hard enough to get some people to come two weeks in a row, much less daily to worship God.

They met at the Temple because they were Jewish. The Temple was not only the religious center for the Jews, it was also the center of the whole Jewish life. People were taught there, business was transacted there, beggars begged there. And so the early believers dedicated themselves to going there daily to talk about, learn about and worship Christ Jesus.

Coming together for worship was evidently very important to these first believers. Just how important is it for you in your own life?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need.
Acts 2:44-45 (NLT)

After devoting themselves to the Apostles’ teaching, the first believers put into practice what they were learning. They dedicated themselves to service taking seriously the teaching of Jesus where he taught to be great one must serve.

First of all they shared with each other so none of their own was in need. As Christians we are supposed to be first responders when our Church family are in need. Sometimes this need will be financial. At other times it will be emotional. Whether we’re called upon to help a grieving widow or train up a child or give to one who’s lost a job, it is imperative that we help each other when needs arrive.

We are not to look within only, though. Needs within the community of faith will arise, but even more so, it seems, are the needs outside our family. The first believers did what was necessary to provide money for those in need outside their group as well. After giving your tithe to your church, you might be called upon to support a mission trip, or buy food for a hungry person, or work in a soup kitchen, or volunteer as a mentor, etc.

The key to this verse is that the believers gave so that those within their community didn’t go without, and then gave so that all those that they knew who were in need were taken care of as well. Today this is a huge task, but one that we’re no less called to.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord's Supper), and to prayer.
Acts 2:42 (NLT)

Fellowship was very important to the first believers. The Greek word that has been translated "fellowship" means far more than just meeting together, eating, & having a good time. It means having a common bond and a closeness. It’s a feeling of togetherness, of belonging to each other, of belonging to the family of God.

Our Church being in fellowship means that wherever we are, we’re a place where the lonely can find friends, the sinful can find understanding and forgiveness and the believers can find support from others who have the same kind of faith.

I read where the huge redwood trees in California are the largest living things on earth and the tallest trees in the world. Some of them are 300 feet high and more than 2,500 years old. You would think that trees that large would have a tremendous root system, reaching down hundreds of feet into the earth. But that isn’t the case. Redwoods have a very shallow root system. The roots of these trees are, however, intertwined, which keeps them from falling when storms come up.

That’s how God created us. He created us to become intertwined in each other’s lives. This is how we endure the storms of life. It also means that we have others to celebrate with us when joy comes our way.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Peter's words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, "Brothers, what should we do?"

Peter replied, "Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:37-38 (NLT)

Peter had just finished preaching the first sermon in the newly developing Church. These first believers were convicted of their sinful deeds and asked what could be done. Peter replies to them in the same way he would reply to us today, “repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.”

In an article by Rick Warren that I read this morning, he said that the biblical word for changing one’s mind is repent. Repent means to change. In a biblical sense it means changing from the ways of sin and turning to God’s ways for our lives. So repenting and turning to God really aren’t two different things. They become one action that each of us must have in our lives to be saved.

Then Peter tells them to be baptized in the name of Christ. Being baptized is something we do. Remember, salvation is a gift. Baptism is a response to this gift. And if something happens to us before that baptism occurs, it won’t mean that we’re not saved. Being baptized in the name of Jesus is as much about us choosing to believe the message of Christ and following him as Lord and trusting Him as Savior.

In reality these three things that Peter tells the people to do is what we mean when we say to have faith in Jesus. Peter says to repent, turn to God and be baptized in the name of Jesus (or accept Him and His ways for your life). That’s faith. That’s salvation.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV)

Jesus told us that we would be the light of the world. We are Christ's presence in a world darkened by Satan. With this in mind we need to decide what to do. Are we going to get excited about this Lord of ours that saved us from sin and death? Are we going to claim the joy that only Christ can offer us? Are we going to be a city on a hill that will be the envy of all nations so that they will want to be like us? Or will we put our lamps under bowls for no one to see the light of Christ through us. Remember, Christ has offered you a gift. He has given you the gift of His light. It can be like a bonfire that will blaze all night long, or it can be like a candle that loses all its oxygen and goes out, because you placed a hard metal bowl over it. The choice is yours.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us.
1 John 4:11-12 (NLT)

There has always been anger and hatred in our world. It began with a jealous Cain and has grown from one murder to mass genocides.

Anger and hate can even find its way into the Church. I've seen people in our churches who've forgotten the purpose that God gave them. Many of us have seen those who are more interested in control or running the church their way instead of God's way. I've also seen preachers who've decided that they know better than God and feel like their church is their own private territory. And in both of these scenarios, I've seen bickering, backbiting, gossip, anger and eventually hate.

As Christians we are called to be different from the world. You'd expect to see this going on in a large corporation where all are competing to get ahead. But our churches should be a place of peace that are set apart from the world.

Of course the truth of the matter is that we Christians are still sinful human beings. We cannot claim to be perfectly sinless. But we can strive for it. That might be where our problem lies. Maybe we're not striving to live the perfect lives that Jesus would like us to do.

We need to strive to be different...to be set apart from this world instead of conformed to it...to go on towards perfection. And when I say go on towards perfection, I mean it as Wesley did. I mean that even though we will never be perfectly sinless people, we can strive for (and obtain) perfection in Christian love.

When John wrote "since God loved us that much", he was talking about verse 9 that reads "God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him." So God loves us so much that He gave of Himself for us. He was born into a cold world and died an even colder death. And since He loved us this much, the least we can do is love each other. It is only then that God will preside in us. If we have hate for people who are different; people of different color, people that think differently, people in our churches, people who come from our own household, people in general, then we do not have God in us. This is simply because God is love...and where hate presides, God does not.

Let us strive to be like Christ and and obtain perfect Christian love. Break down those barriers that separate you and whomever. Forgive a friend. Shake the hand of a stranger who may look or act different from you. Speak to someone you normally wouldn't. Smile at anyone today. Let us allow the love of Christ to show through us so that others will know that we are different...that we are set apart...that we are with God and He is with us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
Jeremiah 6:16 (NIV)

Crossroads are places where we have to make a decision. There's an old tale about a legendary blues guitarist named Robert Johnson. One night at midnight he went out to a particular crossroads in the Mississippi Delta. It was there that he met the devil and made the decision to give up his soul in order to play the guitar better than anyone else.

Johnson's legend is about a man who came to a crossroads and made a decision. This decision was based on a deep desire that came from within to be able to play the guitar and have others want to see him perform. At his crossroads, it was all about him. But in the end, his shortsightedness lost him his eternal soul.

When we come to a crossroads in our own lives, what will guide our decision. We can be tempted to make poor decisions that will affect our lives in tragic ways if we're not careful. We can also seek the guidance of the one who already knows what's best for us.

Never make hasty decisions that you might regret later. Pray for guidance. Expect God to help you find your way. You can count on Him to be there. He may not always lead you to the easiest decision or the one that you like the best, but He'll bring you to the one that's best for you.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Peter's words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, "Brothers, what should we do?"
Acts 2:37 (NLT)

Peter had just finished preaching his first sermon where he shared with the people that they were responsible for the death of Jesus, who was the Messiah. Their sins had been pointed out to them, which "pierced their hearts". In essence Peter had awakened their consciences.

I fear that too many of our hearts have never been pierced. People can claim Jesus, but never face up to their sinfulness. But when sinners' eyes are opened it becomes painful for them. Their sins can no longer be hidden or justified. It's like a wound being exposed and alcohol poured over it. It burns. This burn, however, is the first step in healing.

Face your sin. Seek God's forgiveness and help with your sin. Repent of (or turn from) you sin. Then the wounds of your soul will heal.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:10-11 (NIV)

How many of us could say these same words with Paul?

Many could share the sentiments that they want to know Christ and that they want to know the power of the resurrection. How many could say that they want to share in his sufferings?

How well do we really know Christ? For example, do we know how he treated those who were considered outcasts? Do we know how lenient he was with and how he gave second chances to those who disagreed with him or didn't understand him? Do we completely understand the fact that he got along better with those who didn't have their act straight or didn't know how sinful they were than he did with those who seemed to have it all right and was proud of this fact?

Do we really want to know Christ? Because if we do really get to know him AND we claim Him as Lord, then we might just be convicted to become more like him?

Read this passage again. And if you really do want to know him and become more like him, open up one of the Gospels today. Read through it and take note of every time you see Jesus acting or teaching something that is unlike how you live your life. When you've finished the Gospel (in a day, a week or whatever) see if you know more about Christ and how you can be more like Him.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are.
Hebrews 4:12 (NLT)

In the days when Hebrews was written, the Word of God might have meant what the Apostle's had taught and what was written in the Hebrew Scriptures. Today we look to our bibles as the Word of God. So every time we open the Bible there is power in the words that come alive on the pages. We may not always recognize the power, but it's there. It's powerful enough to convict us on one hand and show us great love on the other.

What is something that you've learned about yourself by reading the Bible?

Make it your goal to open up your bible at least once a day and find something in it that brings life to you. Read through the Bible in a year or start with trying to read a whole book. Take the "Thought of the Day !!" verses and read the whole chapter instead of just a verse. Bible study comes different for different people. The key is to make sure we're studying so that we can find the power of God in the pages.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

But when our time was up, we left and continued on our way. All the disciples and their wives and children accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray.
Acts 21:5 (NIV)

When was the last time your family prayed together?

In the love of Christ,
greg